


Numbers & Space

by agent_astronaut



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Space, M/M, SouHaru Week, astronaut! haru, mathematician! sousuke, probably scientifically inaccurate but, what can i do
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-02
Updated: 2015-12-02
Packaged: 2018-05-04 15:22:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,376
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5339006
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agent_astronaut/pseuds/agent_astronaut
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The astronaut! Haru mathematician! Sousuke AU nobody asked for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Numbers & Space

The first thing Haru noticed when he stepped outside of the space station was the vastness of it all. He knew he shouldn’t be surprised – after all, years of training had led to that moment, years of dense physics text books, intense physical training and a lot of preparation for the day he finally got on a rocket and experienced real zero gravity. But when the day finally arrived, Haru seemed to forget the preparation and took in a sharp breath at the sight before him. Endless night spread around him, an ebony black sky dotted with molten stars as far as his eye could reach, and he realized nothing on Earth could have prepared him for the real thing.

Haru looked down, and he could see the Earth in its entirety, its blue oceans sprawling beneath him, which sent a twitch of melancholy through his brain. He took in the perfect round shape of the planet, so familiar from photographs and yet so different from all of them, and he stood there in awe, wondering how something so big could make him feel so small. 

The stereo made some interference in his ears, but soon he managed to hear Makoto’s voice in his ear. “Haru? Are you there? Are you okay?”

Haru let out the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding and nodded “Yeah. I’m here, Makoto”

“It’s a good sight, isn’t it?” he asked, and Haru marveled at his ability to always know what was going through his mind, even with the enormous distance between them. “Is it as impressive as they say”

“More” Haru answers, and Makoto lets out a soft chuckle.

“I’m glad. Are you ready to move? The panel that needs fixing isn’t that far away”

Haru took in one last glance at the stars and the planet beneath him, and nodded. “I’m ready”

“Okay then” Makoto hummed. “The panel you need to fix is on the back of the station, so hold on to the rail real tight, don’t let go. Oh, and make sure your rope is connected to the station, we don’t want it breaking suddenly. And-“

Haru huffed. “Makoto” he said, making his friend shut up. “I know the protocol”

He heard Makoto sigh through the intercom “I know, I’m sorry, I’ll stop. But you can’t blame me for worrying” Haru could practically hear his pout from all the way up there. “Just make sure you’re safe, okay? I’ll put Sousuke on, I don’t know the details for the operation”

Haru sighed and tried to control his pulse, which had fluttered at the mention of the mathematician’s name. He had to concentrate on the mission, he couldn’t let anything distract him.

He held on to the rail, and pulled the rope towards him, checking it was still connected to the station, and safe for him to go on. “Everything clear” he informed Makoto, but a deep voice he knew too well answered instead.

“Okay then” Sousuke said, and the sound of his voice made Haru remember deep blue eyes and gentle smiles. “Just move right on the rail, until you reach the third stair. Then, just go down three steps and you should be there without any trouble”

Haru followed Sousuke’s instructions, head focused on the task at hand so he wouldn’t get more distracted. He soon reached the defective panel near him, and said “I’ve got it”

“Great. Now just look for the control screen” he said. Haru looked around, examining the panel for said object. “Do you see it?” Sousuke continued “It’s a metal thing with buttons, just like the ones we have here, it should be-“

“Sousuke” Haru cut him off, and noticed how his voice sounded rougher than normal. He coughed.

“Yeah?” Sousuke breathed, and Haru frowned.

“I know what a control panel looks like”

“Oh” Sousuke said, and Haru imagined the gears turning in his brains, and regretted not being able to see his thinking face. “Okay. Sorry”

“Don’t apologize”

“Okay” he said, softly. Haru focused back on the panel, locating the control screen and walking towards it. “Did you find it though?”

Haru huffed. “Yes, Sousuke, I found it, I’m not an idiot”

“Okay, don’t get so grumpy on me” he grunted, and Haru rolled his eyes. 

“Now what?” he asked.

“Turn it on”

“I’m sorry?”

“I said, turn the screen on, mister ‘I know the procedure’”

Haru huffed again, and he heard Sousuke chuckle a bit. He’d never realized how much he missed that laugh.

“So” Sousuke said, and coughed, making the stereo sound make some crinkling noises. “How’s space?”

Haru raised an eyebrow, and turned the power button on the control panel “I’m sorry?”

“I said how’s space”

“You did not just attempt to make small talk with me”

“Look, I’m just trying to get this conversation going, ok? I’m sorry for avoiding uncomfortable silences”

“They’re not uncomfortable” Haru muttered.

“I’m sorry?” Sousuke asked, and Haru blushed. 

“I don’t think our silences are uncomfortable” he repeated, more clearly this time, and he felt forever grateful that Sousuke couldn’t see his pink cheeks. 

His answer was met with silence. And then;

“Oh”

Haru groaned internally, thinking ‘ok now we’re uncomfortable’, but he was saved by the screen’s light turning on.

“I’m in” he said, and he heard Sousuke laugh. “What”

“You sound like you’re a hacker or something with your I’m in. You just turned on a fucking screen”

Haru felf his cheeks heat up again. “Just give me the code I have to enter” he groaned.

“Sure. Pay attention”

Haru dutifully copied the code Sousuke dictated, his hands busy with pressing the right buttons but his thoughts wondering into dangerous territory, into the vibrancy of Sousuke’s words, the way he treated the numbers like real entities, and how his voice waltzed around them with reverence. He remembered how important numbers were for Sousuke, how he had struggled to find something he truly liked after his accident with his shoulder prevented him from becoming an astronaut, how his doctorate in mathematics had felt like the start of something beautiful, and getting a job in the space agency, the best thing to ever happen to him. His mouth curved into a small smile as he finished copying the code.

“Did you get it all?” Sousuke asked, and Haru nodded, forgetting Sousuke couldn’t see him. “Haru? Are you still there?”

“Yeah” he answered, and watched the screen turn green and the panel move. “It’s working”

“That’s good”

“Yeah”

They stayed in silence for a moment, and Haru turned around to look back at the spectacle around him. He looked down, looking for Japan in the Earth beneath him, looking for Sousuke, and he noticed something. 

“The sun is setting” he said into the intercome.

“What did you say?”

“You asked me how space was” Haru explained. “I’m watching a sunset right now”

“Ah, yes, the coordinates say you’re right above Europe at the moment, you would be able to see the sunset” there was a small pause. “Is it good?”

“It’s beautiful” Haru exhaled. “The photographs don’t come close to the real thing”

He heard Sousuke’s smile as he said “That’s good”

“When I get home-” Haru started, in a fit of bravery “When I come back to Earth, I’ll paint it for you”

He heard Sousuke draw in a hitched breath, both of them realizing the consequences of that sentence. Not just a blind impulse, but a promise of a future together, a promise of a second chance.

“Okay” Sousuke whispered, and Haru closes his eyes and smiles. “Okay, that’s a plan”

“Yeah”

“I’ll get you back to Makoto. Just go back to the door. Can you do that?”

Haru nodded “Yeah”

“See you soon, Haru” Sousuke whispered, and the call ended.

The way back to the inside was a short one, lost in a haze of bliss and hope, tuning out Makoto’s rambles about his day at the base and what Rin had been up to. When he got to the door, he spared one last look to the planet beneath him, his home, knowing that somewhere down there someone was waiting for him, before entering the space station and shutting the door behind him with a loud thud.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr at [agent-astronaut](agent-astronaut.tumblr.com)


End file.
